Through a strange set of circumstances, I found a way to equalize
batteries with an Iota charger.
My DLS 45 was borrowed on a couple of occasions. I made the mistake
of telling the borrowers how to adjust the voltage through the
potentiometer. Predictably, when I needed the unit, the pot had been
ruined. Calling Iota, they said there was no fix. The pot was
soldered to the board.
The way the device works is that lowering the pot resistance
increases the output voltage. My solution was to cut the pot out of
the circuit board and solder the leads together. Now with the quick
charge plug out, it holds at 15.2 to 15.4 volts. The the quick
charge plug in, it runs at around 15.7 volts. I equalized a pair of
T-105s yesterday without the quick charge plug. It worked like a charm.
This is much more useful for my needs than the factory
configuration. My uses are emergency charges from generators, often
in cold weather, and equalization charges. The operation of removing
the pot was tricky for me, but someone more used to working with
electronic circuit boards might not find it too difficult.
At 01:27 PM 10/15/2012, you wrote:
Hi, Mechanix~
Bill Dorsett polled the group about recommended battery chargers for
connection to a generator. Iota brand is the successor to Todd
brand; I believe Iota bought the designs, tooling, etc. and these
have appeal because of the relatively low cost per rated amp. They
seem generator tolerant.
The Todd design is a "constant voltage" type charger,
however--basically an AC to DC converter with a fixed voltage
output. In my experience, the "75 amp" Todd type charger will
deliver 75 amps only for a relatively short time when first
connected to a low battery. As the battery's voltage comes up that
presents a sort of "back pressure" which slows the rate of charge.
That's not so bad if one has utility power >always on< to drive the
charger, but if an engine generator is running...
The inverter/chargers (with which we are all familiar) begin with a
"constant current" part of the charge cycle--aka bulk charge. The
charger is determined to sock the battery with the amperage we have
requested in the setup; I think a pulse width modulation is going on
where the charger hums up its voltage in order to keep the amps high
even as the back pressure builds. When it's time for the absorption
phase of the charge, the logic shifts to a "constant voltage" where
the amps are gradually dialed lower in order to keep the battery at
the target voltage so it can "absorb". Ignoring the float phase
which would come later, this overall charge regimen would be called
CC/CV for "constant current/constant voltage". The CV part of that
is not much different from what a Todd style charger does; it's just
that the Todd design does not precede that phase with a CC "constant
current" phase.
Some free-standing battery chargers have a CC/CV algorithm but those
seem to cost as much or more than a comparably rated
inverter/charger. Check the Magnum mod-square multi's, Bill, such as
their RD series. As others on this List have noted, just the charge
function is pretty good and since the inverter circuit is not pure
sine, that keeps the cost lower. Built in time delay before it loads
up the generator is an added benefit.
Jolliness,
Mick Abraham, Proprietor
<http://www.abrahamsolar.com>www.abrahamsolar.com
Voice: 970-731-4675
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